The Sun and News of the World have both launched new services allowing readers to send in stories, pictures and video for publication via mobile phone text message.
The News of the World claimed a "world's first" when it launched the service on Sunday — it was then also rolled out by The Sun on Tuesday.
The service makes use of new mobile phone technology which means readers and tipsters can use just one number — 63000 — to text words, pictures and video. News of the World online editor Bill Akass said: "We make no bones about paying good money for good content. Now we're just making it easier for our readers to send us their content in either pictures or tips format, and we'll pay them for the material we publish."
He said the idea was pioneered by a newspaper in Norway which had found it to be highly successful.
Akass added that the new number had already prompted some "promising news leads" and provided content for the paper's website.
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